Acetylene-gas generator.



Patentedlune |2,' 1900.

No. 65l,340.

E. P. CALDWELL. ACETYLENE GAS GENERATOR.

(Application filed-Aug. 19, 1899.)

(No Model.)

h// rwasaza directed thereby to one side of the chamber NITED STATESPATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD P. CALDWELL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE AS-SIGNMENTS, TO THE GRAHAM ELECTRIC COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

ACETYLENE-GAS GENERATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 651,340, dated June 12,1900.

Application filed August 19, 1899.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be itknown that I, EDWARD P. CALDWELL, a citizen of the United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Gas-Generators, of whichthe following is a specification, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings.

My invention relates to machines for gencrating gas by the union of aliquid and a solid, and is primarily designed for the production ofacetylene gas.

It has for its object the construction of a machine for such purposethat will be cheap, simple, and effective and in which the supply ofsolid material to the liquid will be antomatically effected by theaction of the bell or movable portion of the gas-holder upon meansthrough'which valvesin the carbid-receptacle are operated. This object Iaccomplish as illustrated in the drawings and hereinafter described.

That whichlbelieve to be new will be pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinalsection of the gas-generating apparatus. Fig. 2 is a sectional detailview of the carbid receptacle or holder for solid material.

Referring to such drawings, A represents the fixed po tion of agas-holder adapted to contain water, as usual, and B represents theordinary bell or movable portion of such holder within the fixedportion.

C represents the gas-generating chamber, located below the gas-holder,and which in the construction shown is formed integral with the fixedportion A of such holder, the two being separated bya horizontalpartition a. The bottom I) of the generating-chamber C is formed on anincline, as shown, in order that the refuse from the used carbid may beand be the more readily drawn off or taken out through a suitableopening in the side of chamber. As shown, an ordinary cock 0 is insertedthrough the wall of such chamber at a point opposite the lower end ofsuch inclined bottom, through which cook the refuse matter may be drawnoff.

D represents a carbid-receptacle in the form Serial No. 727,751. (Nomodel.)

i of a tube, the lower end of which is open and communicates with thechamber C through an opening in a lateral extension of the horizontalpartition (1, upon which partition said carbid-receptacle is located.The upper end of this receptacle is to be closed by a cap (1 or othersuitable device. Within the carbidreceptacle and pivoted on oppositesides thereof are two valves E E, held normally in a closed position bysuitable springs to prevent the downward passage of carbid, the

springs shown being ordinary coiled springs attached at one end to thevalves and at the other end to the wall of the tube D at points abovethe valves,such springs being indicated, respectively, by e e. Thesesprings being 10- cated within the carbid-chamber are necessaril ysurrounded with the carbid that is held in said chamber by the valvesE'E, and as the valves are opened and closed from time to time thesprings of course are extended and retracted, and such action of thesprings pro: duces an agitation of the carbid that tends to loosen themass, and thus overcomes any tendency of the carbid to clog inthe'receptacle D and be thereby prevented from freely and quicklyfalling when the valves are opened; To the said valves are attached,respectively, rods F F, which pass down into the generating-chamber C,their lower ends being secured, respectively, to levers G G,

.hinged to the casing of the chamber C, as in- To the outer end of eachle-- dicated at ff. ver G G is pivoted, as shown at g g, a vertical rodH H, respectively, which rods pass up through an opening in thehorizontal partition a and through pipes h h, respectively, such pipesprojecting beyond the water in the gas-holder and serving as guides forthe rods. As shown, each of the rods is long enough to be acted upon bythe top of the bell or movable portion B of the gas-holder before suchbell or movable portion reaches I the limit of its descent. It will alsobe seen that one of the rodsto wit, rod H-is extended upward fartherthan the other and will of course be acted upon by the bell or movableportion B in its descent before the other rod is so acted upon.

I is a pipe open at its lower end only and communicating through anopening'in the horizontal partition a with the chamber 0. Near the topof said pipe is suitably secured a short section of pipe 2',communicating at one end with the interior of the pipe I and dependingso that its other end is below the surface of the water in thegas-holder.

J is a passage for gas from the gas-holder, and, as shown, is formed ofa piece of pipe of large diameter open at both ends and passing throughsuitable openings in the horizontal partition a and the inclined bottomI) of the gas-generating chamber 0. Its upper end opens into thegas-holder above the water therein, and its lower end opens into areceptacle K beneath the inclined bottom Z1, such receptacle and thepassage J both being adapted to contain a supply of charcoal or othersuitable matter adapted to purify the gas.

L indicates a pipe leading from the receptacle K and intended to conveythe gas generated in the chamber 0 to the place of consu m ption.

With the device in use and a supply of carbid in the receptacle D, asrepresented, when the quantity of gas in the holder is reduced throughbeing drawn off for use the bell or movable part B of said holder ofcourse gradually descends, and when sufficient gas has been drawn offthe said bell or movable part will come in contact with the uppermostone of the projecting rods H and forceit down, the effect-being, throughthe lever Gand rod F, connected therewith, to cause the valve E to bepulled down and allow a small quantity of carbid to fall into thechamber 0, and as it comes into contact with the water in such chambergas will of course be immediately evolved and will rise and pass throughthe pipes I and i, and from the water, into which it passes as it leavesthe pipe 2', will pass into the gasholder. Now if gas in sutficientquantity has been evolved the pressure will of course raise the bell ormovable part B, releasing the pressure on the rod II, allowing thespring e to close the valve E, and shutting off the supply of carbid.If, however, not enough carbid is delivered by the opening of the valveE, as described, to generate a sufficient quantity of gas, the farthersinking of the bell or movable portion B will bring its top also incontact with the upper end of the lowermost rod H, and through it leverG and rod F will open the valve E, and both valves being thus openedwill allow carbid to descend in quantity su fficient to immediatelygenerate a supply of gas the pressure of which will raise the bell ormovable portion 13, both valves being closed, of course, by the actionof their respective springs e 6 immediately upon the pressure on thebell being removed from the upper ends of the rods H H.

By the means shown and described gas can be quickly and economicallygenerated and with but little attention on the part of the user beyondfilling the receptacle D from time to time as needed with fresh carbidand removing the refuse from the chamber 0, which latter operation isgreatly facilitated by providing the inclined bottom I), which of coursedirects all refuse solid matter to one side of the chamber, at whichside is located the opening through which the refuse is removed or drawnoff. Constructing the generatingchamber with such an inclined bottomalso furnishes a large and conveniently-located receptacle in which a sufficient quantity of charcoal or other purifying agent may be stored,through which the gas may pass before it is taken out through thesupply-pipe L for consumption.

That which I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by LettersPatent, is-

1. In a machine for generating gas by the union of a solid and a liquid,the combination of a gas-holder com prising a fixed portion and amovable portion,a gas-generating chamber below and in communication withsaid gas-holder and adapted to contain liquid, a receptacle forcontaining solid material to be discharged into the gas-generatingchamber, a plurality of valves located in said receptacle to control thedischarge of the solid material to the gas-generating chamber, levermechanism and connected rods for successively opening said valves by thecontinued downward movement of the movable portion of saidgas-holder,whereby each of said valves may be open at the same time toallow an increased quantity of the solid material to pass to thegenerating-chamber, and means for antomatically and successively closingsaid valves as said movable portion of the gasholder rises,substantially as and for the p urposes described.

2. In a machine for generating gas by the union of-a solid and a liquid,the combination of a gas-holder comprising a fixed and a movableportion, a gas-generating chamber communicating with said gas holder andadapted to contain liquid, a receptacle for containingsolid materialcommunicating with the gas-generating chamber, a plurality of valvescontrolling admission of the solid material to the generating-chamber,rods attached at one end to said valves, pivoted levers to which theother ends of said rods are attached, and other rods attached to andprojecting upward from said levers to different heights and therebyadapted to be successively operated upon by the movable portion of thegas-holder, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

. 3. In a machine for generating gas by the union of a solid and aliquid, the combination of a gas-holder comprising a fixed and a movableportion, a gas-generating chamber communicating with said gas -holderand adapted to contain water, a receptacle for containing solid materialcommunicating with the gas-generating chamber, a plurality of valvescontrolling the admission of the solid matter to the generating-chamber,and a plurality of rods connected with said valves and extended upwardto different heights where communicating with said gas-holder andadapted to contain water, a receptacle for containing solid materialcommunicatingwith the gas-generating chamber, a plurality of valvescontrolling the admission of the solid matter to the generating-chamber, a plurality of rods located within thegenerating-chamber and the gas-holder and extended upward to differentheights whereby they are adapted to be successively moved by the contacttherewith of the movable portion of the gas-holder in its downwardmovement, and means for connecting said rods and valves so that theywill move together, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

5. In a machine for generating gas by the union of a solid and a liquid,the combination with a gas-generating chamber adapted to contain aliquid, of a solid-containing receptacle communicating with saidgenerating-chamber, a valve in said receptacle for controlling the flowof solid material to the gas-generating chamber, means for opening saidvalve, and a spring for closing said valve, said spring being located inthe solid-containing receptacle above the valve and being adapted toagitate said solid material during the act of operating the valve,substantially as and for the purpose specified.

EDWARD P. CALDWELL.

Witnesses:

ALBERT H. ADAMS, HARRY O. MoNsoN.

